


Star Light, Star Bright

by mspotterlovegood



Series: Lunarry drabbles, one-shots and prompts [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Fluff, One-Shot, Romance, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-10
Updated: 2015-05-10
Packaged: 2018-03-29 23:49:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3915268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mspotterlovegood/pseuds/mspotterlovegood
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's okay not to want to be a star.</p>
<p>Tumblr prompt. Warning: extreme fluff abound.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Star Light, Star Bright

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr prompt from tumblr user entropysamples: "Harry always enjoyed the walks he took with Luna throughout the grounds and the forest. Sometimes they talked about trivial things, sometimes they would talk about Harry’s parents or Luna’s mother, or sometimes they would just walk together in silent understanding, enjoying one another’s company."
> 
> I really loved doing this one. It is currently unedited. Please leave a kudos/comment if you like it. (:

“Harry, if you were a star, which one would you be?”

It was the first words spoken that night, and the least he’d expected to hear. He felt like he shouldn’t be surprised, since it was Luna Lovegood asking it, yet he couldn’t help but shoot her a bewildered expression, causing her to giggle.  
“Harry, you’re giving me that look again,” she said, giving him a small smile.  
“W-what?” Harry stammered, suddenly becoming very aware of his facial muscles, moving them uncomfortably. “What look?”  
“Like you’re a confused owl sitting on a perch who just witnessed a Threstal doing it’s mating dance,” she explained simply, as though that was a common thing to be observed.  
“A–what? Threstal’s have a mating dance?” He asked, taken aback.“Of course,” Luna replied, raising an eyebrow. “You haven’t seen it? I can show it to you, if you’d like…”  
“N-no! That’s… that’s okay. You don’t have to do that,” He said, flushing. Luna shrugged her shoulders, turning her attention back to the sky above.  
“If you say so. It’s quite sweet, actually. I’d be flattered if I were a threstal.”  
Harry stared at her, not knowing whether or not to be concerned about that tidbit of information, but brushing it aside regardless. He really didn’t want to be thinking of threstals mating right now. Or ever.

It was a surprise, actually, that this was the first time they’d spoken all day. Both of them were so busy with classes and homework that even during lunch and dinner they seemed to miss each other by mere minutes. Luna, similar to Hermione in her enjoyment of studying, often lost track of time in the library reading, while Harry simply couldn't keep track of any schedule at all. After the year he had, it was an achievement just to get up in the morning every day. Losing Sirius had destroyed his will to do so many every day things… it wasn't until he began to spend time with Luna, particularly going on walks with her, that he started desiring socialization again. Mostly with her, though he didn't want to admit it to anyone.  
They almost hadn’t gone for their nightly walk that evening. A chilly, bitter wind was in the air despite the otherwise warm weather; a foreshadowing of colder nights on the horizon. Luna, who decided to leave her school robes behind and simply wore her uniform, didn’t seem to mind the bitter gale. They had been laying there in the grass for well over an hour and not once had she shivered. In fact, Harry often wondered if the girl had one set body temperature all the time, as she never appeared dressed appropriately for the current weather. Not only that, but ominous clouds hovered overheard, soft rumbles of thunder echoing from far off. The threat of rain seemed high.  
Yet it was her smile that stopped him. The same one she gave him every night before their walks. He felt… at ease, when she smiled at him. It made him want to be around her, if only to spend the whole time in silence besides her humming to herself. Many times they spoke about life. About Sirius. Some times, she’d speak to him about her mother – something he treasured deeply. And then some nights, like tonight, they would walk around the school grounds quietly for awhile before one of them would speak. This time, the lull between them was broken by a strange question that, now that he thought about it, Harry really didn’t know how to answer.

“I’m not sure,” he said finally, after a few moments. “I can’t really see the stars right now, anyway…”  
“I can see them just fine,” she told him lightly. “Perhaps your glasses are foggy.”  
He blinked, staring at her face. She looked so pretty, laying there – patches of dirt on her pink cheeks, eyes wide as they gazed into a world beyond his own.  
_I think I can see fine,_  he thought to himself, but doesn’t say.  
“Yeah,” he said instead. “Maybe.”

“Do you want to know what star I am?” she asks. He nods, and without hesitance her finger shoots into the air, supposedly pointing towards a star. However, the only thing Harry could see was the swirling of clouds above them, completely covering the night sky in a thick layer of brown and grey.  
“Uhm, Lu…” he hesitated, “I don’t see a star.”  
“Don’t be silly. Of course you do.”  
He tries to avoid giving her a quizzical look this time, sending her a grin instead.  
“Yeah, probably,” he tells her softly, still staring up at the supposed star he was suppose to see.  
“Why is that your star?” It’s a silly question, really, but he can’t help but ask. Half out of curiosity and half because he just enjoyed listening to her voice.  
She shrugs. “Because it’s right next to yours,” she tells him, like that would explain everything. His eyebrows shot up.  
“Mine?” He asks, “how do you know it’s mine?”

She shrugs again, twirling strands of blond hair in her finger and placing them strategically around her face. “It’s very simple, really,” she said, but doesn’t explain further, leaving Harry to gaze at her expecting a more fleshed out answer. He tried to leave it alone, chocking it up to Luna just being Luna, but minutes later when she becomes terribly distracted by magicking the ends of her hair to raise up around her frame and dance to her humming, he cannot help but come back to it.

“Luna,” he says her name very seriously this time. “Why do you think that’s my star?”  
He almost thinks she’s ignoring him when she doesn’t respond right away. But she gently put down her wand, her hair now resting, and turned her entire body on its side to face Harry, expression dreamy.  
“Because,” she begins, a lopsided smile making its way onto her lips. “If everyone has a star, yours would be the one I’d want to be closest to, Harry.”  
This time, he knows he looks foolish without her telling him. He can feel the heat arising through his entire body, his adams apple bobbing with a nervous gulp.  
“Th-that… that’s… nice, I guess,” he said flatly.  _Great move, Potter_. He thinks, mentally kicking himself. But Luna doesn’t mind. Instead, she reaches for his hand and squeezes it briefly before turning again onto her back and giving her attention back to the sky. He feels electricity go through his palm and up his arm, down to his heart, causing it to skip. He brushes it off, trying to avoid eye contact with her now, attempting to go back to just enjoying the night. She returns to humming and playing with her hair, and does not ask anymore questions. The night concludes mostly in silence.  
Yet as they walked–or in Luna’s case, skipped–backed to the school, well after curfew, Harry couldn’t help but think about what she said the entire time they traveled back.  
“Well, goodnight Harry,” Luna said, as they reached a point of parting ways. She’d remained fairly quiet for the rest of the evening, not asking anymore odd questions.  
“I quite enjoyed tonight. Do it again tomorrow?”  
Harry nodded, saying nothing, a lump suddenly finding home in his throat.  
She smiled at him in understanding and pivoted on her heel to leave.

In a rush of adrenaline and bravery, Harry reached for her arm, catching it and stopping her mid-turn. Her protuberant eyes settled on his hand, and for the first time, it was her rather than Harry that looked puzzled.  
“Is something wrong, Harry?” she asked, concern in her tone.  
“N-no,” he stuttered, immediately letting go of her and scratching the back of his head nervously. “It’s just.. uh, what you said earlier…” He paused, trying to unjumble his words.  
“Well, it was really… nice. And, uh…” He breathed deeply, building up confidence.  
“Luna… I think, I wouldn’t really want to be a star. But, if I was… I'd definitely want to be the one next to you.”  
As he said the words, he could practically hear Ron’s voice in his head.  
_Blimey, mate,_  he would say,  _who are you, Gilderoy Lockhart?_  
But Luna… Luna simply grinned toothily at his words.  
“That’s very sweet, Harry,” she told him sincerely. “And it’s okay, you know, to not be a star. After all, I think you’re more like the sun, really.” With that confession, she reached for his hand once more, and gave it a quick squeeze. “Goodnight, Harry Potter,” she said softly, before walking away.  
Harry looked down at his hand. His heart which was racing now fell to a steady beat, a comfort passing over him. Closing his palm, he chuckled to himself.  _The sun, huh?_ He thinks. Sighing, he gazes up just in time to watch Luna disappear around the corner.

That night, Harry Potter goes to bed sleeping sound, knowing that another nightly walk with Luna awaited him tomorrow.


End file.
